12 September 2010
Washington, DC USA
Scientists have found that a drug called Acamprosate that helps prevent relapse in alcoholics.
It prevented relapse in one in every nine patients who had stopped drinking and increased the number of days patients spent not drinking by an average of three days a month, according to a new Cochrane Systematic Review.
The University of Munich researchers showed that the risk of a patient on acamprosate returning to drinking was 86% of that of a patient who took a placebo instead.
However, diarrhoea was reported as a side effect of the drug.
"Acamprosate is certainly no magic bullet, but it is a safe and effective treatment for patients who are trying to stop drinking," said Susanne Rosner.
"The benefits we have seen in these trials are small. However, we must remember that these are additional benefits on top of those from other non-drug therapies."
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